Liverpool look to send Real Madrid packing with huge deal for wing star
Liverpool are considering handing Sadio Mane a new deal that will keep him at the club until the end of the season, in a bid to end Real Madrid’s interest in the winger, according to reports.
Mane, who moved to Anfield in the summer of 2016, has become irreplaceable in Jurgen Klopp‘s team having scored 77 goals in 161 appearances for the Reds.
Indeed, his stock has risen immensely in the past two seasons, when he has helped fire Liverpool to Champions League glory and come up with several match-winning contributions.
Such performances have reportedly led to interest from Real Madrid, who have been uninspiring in their efforts to replace Cristiano Ronaldo.
However, according to Football Insider, Liverpool are weighing up ending any further interest in Senegal international Mane by handing him a bumper new contract.
The winger’s current terms – extended in November 2018 – expire in the summer of 2023, by which point Mane would have turned 31.
Therefore, it is said that Liverpool believe another extension will put paid to Madrid’s hopes of landing the player on a big-money move.
Madrid signed Luka Jovic and Eden Hazard last summer but both have been blighted with injuries, with former Chelsea man Hazard suffering two ankle problems.
Jovic has also struggled and Madrid announced recently that the former Eintracht Frankfurt striker has injured his foot amid the shutdown of football across Europe.
Mane, meanwhile, has been a virtual ever-present for Liverpool and has only missed two games all season due to a slight hamstring injury.
In other news, Liverpool midfielder Pedro Chirivella has reportedly agreed to join Ligue 1 side Nantes upon the expiry of his contract at the end of June.
Chirivella has enjoyed something of a resurgence in the FA Cup and League Cup this term, having struggled to make his mark in previous seasons.